ISLAMABAD: A medical report submitted in a Pakistani court on Tuesday said the country’s former prime minister Nawaz Sharif should not travel to his country due to medical complications that might cause risk to his life.
Sharif was found guilty in a corruption reference by an accountability court in Pakistan and sent to jail for 10 years in December 2018. He began his prison term in his country but was temporarily released on medical grounds.
Subsequently, he left Pakistan in November 2019 to seek medical treatment in London. However, he did not return to his country since then.
The government has tried to bring him back by negotiating an agreement with the United Kingdom for the repatriation of convicted citizens. It has also used Pakistani courts where several cases remain pending against him and his close relatives.
“In my opinion, until he [Nawaz Sharif] gets coronary angiography he should ... stay in close proximity to the facilities he has been getting ... until [the end of] COVID-19,” said the report submitted in the Lahore High Court which was later mentioned by local media outlets and circulated on social media platforms.
“His co-morbidities make him a ‘high risk’ candidate for death, respiratory failure etc., should he contract COVID-19 infection,” it added.
Prepared by Dr. Fayaz Shawl, a senior cardiologist in the United States who has treated Sharif since 2004, the medical report said the former prime minister was “advised to have a healthy diet and exercise regularly.”
“In addition, he was strongly advised to manage his stress to the maximum extent to avoid what happened during his imprisonment [in Pakistan],” the document continued. “Any further solitary confinement for a prolonged period will have negative effect toward his life.”
The report maintained that Sharif should “proceed with his coronary angiography and possible angioplasty” or redo coronary artery bypass graft surgery once the pandemic was over.
Pakistan’s information minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain said the medical report was fabricated, adding the Sharif family should return the people of Pakistan their money.
“Such fake reports are not going to serve his purpose,” he maintained.
Hussain said he was hopeful that Pakistani courts would take notice of how the former prime minister left the country and submitted fabricated reports to stay away from Pakistan.
Medical report submitted in local court advises Nawaz Sharif against traveling to Pakistan
https://arab.news/pzfm8
Medical report submitted in local court advises Nawaz Sharif against traveling to Pakistan
- Sharif was found guilty in a corruption reference by an accountability court and sent to prison for 10 years in December 2018
- He was temporarily released and left Pakistan in November 2019 to seek medical treatment in London
IMF team expected in Islamabad today for loan reviews amid reform scrutiny
- Talks to cover third review of $7 billion bailout and second climate resilience assessment
- Analysts flag revenue shortfall and energy reforms as potential sticking points in negotiations
KARACHI: An International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff mission is expected to arrive in Islamabad today, Wednesday, to begin discussions on key program reviews that will determine Pakistan’s continued access to funding under its $7 billion bailout and a parallel climate resilience facility.
The visit, confirmed last week by IMF communications director Julie Kozack, will cover the third review under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the second review under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF), which supports climate-vulnerable countries.
“We do have a staff team that is expected to visit Pakistan starting February 25th for discussions on the third review under the EFF and the second review under the RSF,” Kozack said at a regular press briefing last week.
The talks come at a sensitive moment for Islamabad, which has spent the past year implementing tax increases, subsidy rationalization and tight monetary policy to stabilize an economy that teetered on the brink of default in 2023.
IMF officials have credited those measures with producing measurable gains. Kozack said Pakistan’s policy efforts under the EFF had helped stabilize the economy and rebuild confidence, pointing to a primary fiscal surplus of 1.3 percent of GDP in the last fiscal year, contained inflation and the country’s first current account surplus in 14 years.
The review is expected to probe fiscal discipline and energy sector reforms, two areas that have historically complicated negotiations between Islamabad and the Fund.
Analysts told Arab News last week that while approval of the next tranche is likely, discussions might not be straightforward.
“This is expected to be a smooth sailing. However, questions might arise,” Shankar Talreja, head of research at Karachi-based Topline Securities Limited, said earlier.
He pointed to a revenue shortfall of Rs336 billion ($1.2 billion) against IMF targets and raised the possibility that the Fund may seek clarification over the government’s recent reduction in electricity tariffs for export-oriented industries, a move designed to support manufacturing but with fiscal implications.
A positive outcome of the review is vital for continued disbursements under the EFF and RSF programs. It will also be important to sustain investor confidence as the country seeks to consolidate its fragile economic recovery.
A successful staff-level review leads to a provisional agreement between the two sides, which then requires approval by the Fund’s Executive Board before the disbursement of the next tranche.
